Wireless communication networks are increasingly being utilized to transfer information, such as data, voice, text or video information, among communication devices. A number of technologies and protocols have been proposed or suggested to maximize the utilization of the available bandwidth in a wireless communication network. Code division multiple access (CDMA) techniques, for example, have been employed in many digital wireless communication systems to permit a large number of system users to communicate with one another. CDMA networks were initially designed to carry voice traffic between a mobile receiver unit and a base station.
Many communication systems utilizing code division multiple access comply with the IS-95 standard, adopted by the Telecommunication Industry Association (TIA). Under the IS-95 standard, a communication system substantially eliminates co-channel interference on the forward link from a base station or cell site to a mobile receiver unit by modulating the information signals with Walsh orthogonal function sequences. A more detailed discussion of the IS-95 standard is provided in “Mobile Station-Base Station Compatibility Standard for Dual-Mode Wideband Spread Spectrum Cellular System,” Telecommunication Industry Association Doc. No. TIA/EIA/IS-95 (1993), incorporated by reference herein.
The mobile receiver unit is typically identified on the wireless communication network using a mobile address. In a given wireless communication network, however, a number of heterogeneous network technologies may be involved, each with potentially different mobile address types. Thus, a number of different mobile address types may need to be supported. The increasing diversity of network elements in such wireless communication network provides additional challenges for network managers that attempt to manage network resources in a uniform manner. Currently, the call processing software that utilizes mobile addresses must explicitly determine the mobile address type by performing a series of hard-coded “test-and-branch” statements. Once the appropriate mobile address type is identified, by satisfying a corresponding test, a series of type-specific processing steps are then performed. Thus, each time a new mobile address type is added to a given wireless communication network, the software must be updated in various places.
A need exists for a cross-platform mobile address plan. A further need exists for a method and apparatus that support multiple mobile address types using object-oriented programming techniques. Yet another need exists for a method and apparatus that can record and deliver multiple mobile addresses in a desired format. Finally, a need exists for an object-oriented approach that allows the diverse mobile address types of different manufacturers to be maintained using a uniform set of commands and functions.